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Committee advances substitute to require better pharmacy access to buprenorphine; pharmacies raise supply and reimbursement concerns
Summary
The committee adopted a substitute to HB137 designed to require baseline stocking of buprenorphine at pharmacies, improved distributor transparency and system-level enforcement while exempting small community pharmacies from burdensome administrative requirements; the committee voted 5–3 to 'do pass' the substitute and 'do not pass' the original bill after extensive pro‑ and con testimony.
After extended testimony and negotiation, the House Health and Human Services Committee adopted a substitute to HB137 that aims to reduce pharmacy‑level barriers to buprenorphine, a medication for opioid use disorder, and recommended the substitute for passage.
Proponents — including addiction medicine physicians and public‑health researchers — told the committee that interrupted access to buprenorphine causes preventable relapses and overdoses; one clinician said a patient was…
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